When Trying Something New, How Dependent Are You On Your Guy Participating With You?

This weekend, my sister and I ran a 5K in Carlsbad, California. She is in shape and I am not, so we didn't run together. No way would my sister ever slow down and run next to me—she wanted to be with her fellow 7-minute milers. I didn't mind. I was in the back, by myself, with the stroller-pushers and their husbands. But here's the thing: our particular race time was for women ages 30-39. That was our division—so why were there so many men? A fair number of women, it seemed, had their husbands running next to them.

I don't know the full story, but I'm assuming some of these women had their guys along as their coaches...or as their crutches. That's fine and it didn't bother me, but from a single girl's perspective, it doesn't look good. It seemed like some women—but not all of them—were leaning a little too heavily on their partner, and at the expense of breaking race "rules." Some of us don't have the luxury, so we've learned to do without. It's not a big deal, but I mean, is it too much to ask to run 3.1 miles on your own? It's like, 20-30 minutes of your life. And the whole point of running is that you move on your own two feet, without a crutch.

Also: Guys never ask their wives to run next to them for support. Isn't it time we ran a few races on our own?

What do you think? Do too many women rely on their guys? In this case, should a woman leave her man on the sidelines or is it no big deal to sneak in your guy for fun?

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